Mr McCormack said it was critical that live exports were open and would remain open under the Coalition.

”The Middle East wants the sheep, they want them not just for the northern summer for the religious festivals and other commemorations that they’ve got, but certainly in the other months of the year when I know the trade gets busier,” he said.

The Nationals leader said measures introduced by the Federal Government, including reducing stocking density by 28 per cent, having independent assessors on board live export vessels and increasing ventilation for livestock, meant animal welfare was a priority.

The live sheep trade was thrown into turmoil following the release of gruesome footage of sheep in terrible conditions heading from Australia to the Middle East earlier in the year.

However Mr McCormack has insisted farmers should not have to bear the consequences.

”Farmers should not have to take the fall for the alleged actions of an exporter,” he said.

“The exporters are on notice too that they’ve got to do the right thing.

“They have to do the right thing for the sake of the sheep, for the sake of the industry and for the sake of Australian farming in general.”

Mr McCormack dismissed the suggestion the end of the live export trade would lead to more processing jobs as the talk of people who were “sitting in their cafes in inner Melbourne and inner Sydney”.

“They quite frankly wouldn't know the difference between a hogget and a wether,” he said.

“Quite frankly they wouldn't even know what a sheep was.

“They just think that it’s something that's packaged, processed in a cryovac when they go to the cold section of the supermarket.”

During his WA trip, Mr McCormack also addressed key regional infrastucture projects at various stages of development.

He said the Myalup-Wellington Dam demonstrated the government’s commitment to water infrastructure

”We need to provide water infrastructure, not just for WA, but right around the nation,” he said.

“To drought proof our nation, provide community capacity for local regional economies and in certain circumstances to mitigate against floods.

”You provide farmers with water and they will convert it into dollars.”

The dam is a $394 million project, with $190 million pledged by the Commonwealth

Senior officers from the state and federal government and Collie Water are working to develop the contractual arrangements to fund and deliver the project.

Mr McCormack said he had previously visited the Peel region and knew how important it was to provide water.

“We need to assess the feasibility of using that storm water for managed aquifer recharge,” he said.

“We need to make sure that we can store as much water as we possibly can through infrastructure projects such as [the Peel Business Park Managed Aquifer Recharge].